So Danaë and her son stayed in the house of the kind man who had saved
them from the sea. Years passed by, and Perseus grew up to be a tall
young man, handsome, and brave, and strong. The king of the island, when
he saw Danaë, was so pleased with her beauty that he wanted her to
become his wife. But he was a dark, cruel man, and she did not like him
at all; so she told him that she would not marry him. The king thought
that Perseus was to blame for this, and that if he could find some
excuse to send the young man on a far journey, he might force Danaë to
have him whether she wished or not.
One day he called all the young men of his country together and told
them that he was soon to be wedded to the queen of a certain land beyond
the sea. Would not each of them bring him a present to be given to her
father? For in those times it was the rule, that when any man was about
to be married, he must offer costly gifts to the father of the bride.
"What kind of presents do you want?" said the young men.
"Horses," he answered; for he knew that Perseus had no horse.
"Why don't you ask for something worth the having?" said Perseus; for
he was vexed at the way in which the king was treating him. "Why don't
you ask for Medusa's head, for example?"
"Medusa's head it shall be!" cried the king. "These young men may give
me horses, but you shall bring Medusa's head."
"I will bring it," said Perseus; and he went away in anger, while his
young friends laughed at him because of his foolish words.
What was this Medusa's head which he had so rashly promised to bring?
His mother had often told him about Medusa. Far, far away, on the very
edge of the world, there lived three strange monsters, sisters, called
Gorgons. They had the bodies and faces of women, but they had wings of
gold, and terrible claws of brass, and hair that was full of living
serpents. They were so awful to look upon, that no man could bear the
sight of them, but whoever saw their faces was turned to stone. Two of
these monsters had charmed lives, and no weapon could ever do them harm;
but the youngest, whose name was Medusa, might be killed, if indeed
anybody could find her and could give the fatal stroke.
When Perseus went away from the king's palace, he began to feel sorry
that he had spoken so rashly. For how should he ever make good his
promise and do the king's bidding? He did not know which way to go to
find the Gorgons, and he had no weapon with which to slay the terrible
Medusa. But at any rate he would never show his face to the king again,
unless he could bring the head of terror with him. He went down to the
shore and stood looking out over the sea towards Argos, his native land;
and while he looked, the sun went down, and the moon arose, and a soft
wind came blowing from the west. Then, all at once, two persons, a man
and a woman, stood before him. Both were tall and noble. The man looked
like a prince; and there were wings on his cap and on his feet, and he
carried a winged staff, around which two golden serpents were twined.
He asked Perseus what was the matter; and the young man told him how the
king had treated him, and all about the rash words which he had spoken.
Then the lady spoke to him very kindly; and he noticed that, although
she was not beautiful, she had most wonderful gray eyes, and a stern but
lovable face and a queenly form. And she told him not to fear, but to go
out boldly in quest of the Gorgons; for she would help him obtain the
terrible head of Medusa.
"But I have no ship, and how shall I go?" said Perseus.
"You shall don my winged slippers," said the strange prince, "and they
will bear you over sea and land."
"Shall I go north, or south, or east, or west?" asked Perseus.
"I will tell you," said the tall lady. "You must go first to the three
Gray Sisters, who live beyond the frozen sea in the far, far north. They
have a secret which nobody knows, and you must force them to tell it to
you. Ask them where you shall find the three Maidens who guard the
golden apples of the West; and when they shall have told you, turn about
and go straight thither. The Maidens will give you three things, without
which you can never obtain the terrible head; and they will show you how
to wing your way across the western ocean to the edge of the world where
lies the home of the Gorgons."
Then the man took off his winged slippers, and put them on the feet of
Perseus; and the woman whispered to him to be off at once, and to fear
nothing, but be bold and true. And Perseus knew that she was none other
than Athena, the queen of the air, and that her companion was Mercury,
the lord of the summer clouds. But before he could thank them for their
kindness, they had vanished in the dusky twilight.
Then he leaped into the air to try the Magic Slippers.